The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1887-06-11
mn CUT CLASS IS cosby.
Fl Susssslhl Prsdnstisn Aecemplished
q Corning. j. Z.
Syracuse Stanard.

0ySoS0OO 0sou0IVs
Cut glass comes high, and it is
no wonder. Down at Corning the
other day I saw them making it,
and through the hill-girded village
of the southern tier is a very diff
cult place to reach from Syracuse,
felt repaid for the hardship of
travel in what l had the privilege
seeing. Corning, N. Y, is getting
bold advertisement the world over
from this industry. Until the man.
facture of cut glass was begun there
several years ago by James Hoare,
it was thought to be as much Sc
cret of foreign art as the making
of hair springs for watches. Thomas
Webb of London was the master of
crystal cutting, and on the tables
of half of the monarchs of the Old
World his wares have an honorable
place. Nowadays connoisseurs in
these things concede that as fine
cutting is done at Corning as
abroad. The importations of glass
in this form has ceased almost en-
tirely. Corning happened to have
a glassworks where a prime article
in transparency was made. THAT'S
what took me go far out of the
world" said Mr.. Hoare, as he stood
in the midst of his treasures, clad
in frowsy working blouse, with
his sleeves rolled up. 1t is the
greatest pride of the celebrated cut
ter that no man in his shop can do
so good a job as he can himself. All
his riches will not take him out of
the realm of buzzing wheels where
the glass is going through the cult
ing process. There are seven of
these, all Of which require skilled
labor of a high order, and at none
Of which can hurry be INDUCED.
The prismatic intricacies of the
ware are completed on a variety of
wheels, supplied with seasand and
dripping water. The most delicate
figures are produced by the en-
ployment of wheels of various sizes.
While l stood by an artisan was
cutting in relief the crest of the
Prince of Wales upon set of COB
lets ordered by a wealthy Anglo
maniac. The three wavy plumes
in this heraldic sign were brought
out with all the effectiveness of
cameo under the dainty touch of
the workman. Mr.. Hoare told me
that the lead glass used for cult
ing costs him 60 cents a pound.
There is a loss of over so per cent.
in weight in producing the finished
piece from the uncut vessel. The
manufacture of this glass is in it.
self very interesting. The estab-
lishment is entirely distinct. All
the bulbs used in the millions of
electric lamps of the Edison plants
throughout the world are made at
these works. A small army of men
were filling orders of this kind the
day l walked through. At the
Corning works the crucibles in
which the glass is smelted are now
being made. For years it was
thought necessary to import them,
and as it is their manufacture is a
trade by itself. Talk about mud
pies of our childhood, here is where
you see the identical pranks Of the
gutter applied to valuable indus
try. The wet clay is kneaded and
mixed in troughs by men in bare
feet, who give it the required con-
sistency by repetitions of the pro-
cess carried on for whole days.
Then the clay is rolled into strips
of about the diameter of a bologna
sausage and in the hands of model
ers, built by little into the desired
forms. Each crucible represents
labor worth over 500. They are left
to dry in q storeroom for eighteen
months before put in the fearful